The Punk PM #16

Hey there, punk!

I’ve been thinking this week about how often we outsource our priorities to frameworks.

It’s easy to plug ideas into RICE and let the numbers decide. But real product decisions aren’t made in spreadsheets.

They’re made in the messy middle—where instinct, experience, and strategy collide.

Here’s why that matters.

Quote of the Week 🙊

Insight 🦉

Prioritisation frameworks are useful—but they’re not a strategy.

RICE, MoSCoW, the Eisenhower Matrix... they all have their place. They help you weigh trade-offs, compare ideas, and bring a bit of order to chaos. But if you’re leaning on them to tell you what to build next, you’ve already missed the point.

Frameworks don’t set direction—they help you navigate it.

It’s your product strategy that tells you what matters most. Without it, frameworks are just sorting algorithms for a list of ideas that may or may not move the needle.

To keep your priorities grounded in strategy, not scores:

• Start with your product vision: What’s the outcome you’re driving toward? If you don’t know that, no framework in the world will save you.

• List the bets that could move the needle: Not features. Bets. Strategic, outcome-aligned, hypothesis-driven ideas.

• Use a framework to rank, not decide: The job of something like RICE is to help you compare your best options—not pick them for you.

• Default to judgement, not maths: If two things score the same, trust your gut—and your team’s experience—to make the call.

Prioritisation isn’t a scoring contest. It’s a strategy conversation. Use frameworks to bring clarity—not to outsource your decision-making.

Action 🚀

This week, skip the frameworks. Reorder your backlog using nothing but your gut—grounded in strategy. No scores, no grids—just clarity on what really has the most impact for your customers, and your business.

Inspiration 💡

The Product Launch Checklist – Janna Bastow turns a chaotic moment into a coordinated mission. Her step-by-step launch guide is more than logistics—it’s a tactical framework for getting teams aligned, risks surfaced, and value delivered. A must-read if “just ship it” isn’t cutting it.Read more

Honing Our ‘AI Intuitions’ as Product Managers – Curtis Michelson makes the case for cutting through the AI noise. In a world drowning in hype, he argues for building instincts—not just skills—to filter signal from bullshit and turn experimentation into impact. Read more

An Inside Look at Every’s Design Philosophy – Lucas Crespo blends classical art with digital craft to create design that actually moves people. In a world of soulless AI-generated interfaces, this is a powerful reminder that great design starts with feeling, not features. Read more

Signing Off ✍️

If this resonates with you, hit reply and let me know what you’re going with your gut on this week. And if you think a friend or colleague would enjoy The Punk PM, feel free to share it with them!

Play it your way,

Toby